1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a tractor constructed for attaching a working implement thereto, and more particularly to a tractor with a working implement such as a backhoe attached to the rear of a tractor body.
2. Description of the Related Art
A working vehicle called a TLB (tractor-front loader-backhoe) is known, which has a front loader attached to the front of a tractor and a backhoe attached to the rear (see Japanese Patent Laying-Open Publication H9-9713 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,056,502, for example).
The tractor employed in the TLB includes a driver""s seat mounted on a tractor body through a reversing support mechanism to be reversible between a forward facing position and a rearward facing position. Forwardly of the driver""s seat is a maneuvering station including a steering wheel and a maneuvering floor. The front loader and backhoe have their own control levers.
When driving the tractor to travel from one location to another or performing an operation with the front loader, the driver""s seat is set to the forward facing position so that the driver may operate the steering wheel, control levers, and so on. When performing an operation with the backhoe, the driver""s seat is reversed to the rearward facing position so that the driver may operate the control lever of the backhoe.
When, for example, the above tractor is driven to a destination, and then engages in an excavating operation by operating the backhoe, the driver first reverses the driver""s seat from the position facing the maneuvering station to the rearward facing position, alights from the tractor to the ground once, walks to a rearward position of the tractor, boards the tractor using steps disposed adjacent the backhoe, and sits on the driver""s seat again.
The driver must make such movements because numerous control levers such as a control lever of a hydraulic lift and an auxiliary shift lever of a propelling system lie in a scattered state longitudinally of the tractor body between a maneuvering area and the backhoe, especially around the driver""s seat. It is therefore difficult to secure a space around the driver""s seat for allowing the driver to move on the tractor body directly from the maneuvering area past the driver""s seat toward the backhoe.
Thus, the driver must take a great trouble in moving from the maneuvering area to a backhoe operating area. Working efficiency also is bad since an excavating operation cannot be started immediately upon arrival at a destination. In addition, since the driver must alight from the tractor body once when moving from the maneuvering area to the backhoe operating area, the driver tends to bring mud from the ground to the tractor body. This requires frequent maintenance operations such as cleaning operations.
On the other hand, the reversing support mechanism of the driver""s seat is constructed for avoiding an interference between the driver""s seat and adjacent control levers. Specifically, the driver""s seat is once raised by a raising and lowering linkage or the like, and turned about a vertical axis and then lowered again. Such construction of the reversing support mechanism has drawbacks of being complicated and requiring a troublesome, multistage operation.
This invention has been made having regard to the state of the art of tractors such as TLBs with a working implement attachable rearwardly of a driver""s seat. An object of this invention, therefore, is to allow the driver to move quickly and easily between a maneuvering area forwardly of the driver""s seat and an implement operating area for operating a working implement attached to the rear of a tractor body, thereby reducing the driver""s trouble and improving working efficiency. Another object of the invention is to prevent mud being brought in by the driver frequently alighting from and boarding the vehicle body.
The above objects are fulfilled, according to this invention, by a tractor comprising a tractor body, a driver""s seat disposed on the tractor body, a working implement attached to a rear end of the tractor body, a tractor control station disposed forwardly of the driver""s seat, an implement control station disposed rearwardly of the driver""s seat, a position switching mechanism for switching the driver""s seat between a forward facing position for allowing a driver seated on the driver""s seat to operate the tractor control station, and a rearward facing position for allowing the driver to operate the implement control station, and a passage disposed on the tractor body for allowing the driver to move past the driver""s seat between the tractor control station and the implement control station.
With this construction, the driver (operator) may move quickly and easily, through the passage formed laterally of the driver""s seat, between the tractor control station disposed forwardly of the driver""s seat and the implement control station disposed rearwardly of the driver""s seat. The trouble involved in such movement is reduced and working efficiency is improved. In addition, this construction minimizes the possibility of bringing mud and the like to the tractor body.
In one preferred embodiment of the invention, the driver""s seat is disposed between right and left wheel fenders. A plurality of control levers are disposed in a concentrated way between one of the wheel fenders and the driver""s seat. The passage is disposed between the other wheel fender and the driver""s seat. Generally, a small tractor has a driver""s seat disposed between wheel fenders. The above construction according to this invention makes effective use of the narrow space between the right and left wheel fenders, and secures the passage without difficulty.
In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the driver""s seat may be horizontally rotatable about a vertical axis to switch between the forward facing position and the rearward facing position. Then, the driver""s seat may be turned with a protruding position of large turning radius moving through the passage. In this way, the driver""s seat may be switched quickly and easily without the protruding position interfering with the control levers. This construction does not require a complicated mechanism used in the prior art for raising the driver""s seat.
In the preferred embodiment, the passage includes a step member disposed thereon and having an antislipping function, the step member serving as a reinforcing member for the wheel fender disposed laterally of the passage. This construction provides the passage with an antislipping function, and rigidly supports the wheel fender. The step member may be detachably attached to the passage. Then, when the step member is detached from the passage, mud and the like adhering to the step member may be removed therefrom with ease. Further, the step member may be changed easily as necessary.